Mike is only a killer out of revenge and necessity. He prefers peaceful solutions. No different from his legacy costs in BB. I loved the 'Worlds 2nd best lawyer' thing. You know Kim intended for herself to be the best, but Jimmy sees it immediately as a symbol of being in Charles' shadow.
You think so? It looked to me like he got the joke, and knew she meant she was number one. It was just the type of in-joke people that close would share. And really, he didn't need to read anything into the travel mug, when his dick brother went out of his way to show up and try to stare him into paralysis.
He got the joke, he knew what Kim intended. But he's spent his life feeling inferior to Charles. I think seeing the '2nd best' brought up his feelings of inferiority and you could see it in his face for a moment.
What a great episode..what a great show, period. Spotty morality? Perhaps, but who wouldn't want a team like Jimmy and Mike in your corner when the s&$@ hits the fan? If only this story took place in an alternate reality, where there was no Walter White coming along to mess everything up for everyone..
I loved that. Vince isn't afraid to let us see scenes of life even if they are inactive. Samurai Jack and to some extent ST:TMP let scenes wash over us. Things in Jimmy's swank office rang false. The foley artist let us here how some of those monogrammed pens have a refill that clanks a bit while writing--while cheaper plastic nibs are actually more quiet. I miss Jimmy's yellow car.
I'm trying to figure out why Jimmy didn't show the ad to his boss before running it. Either he was intentionally sabotaging himself because he knew he'd fail eventually or he thought he might say no but would forgive him based on the result. Or both. I like how he didn't say anything to Kim at the end so he could still have a nice night before he blew up her reputation. At the end with Mike I was half expecting to see Gus appear. Maybe Nacho is trying to defect to Gus.
I think he was expecting forgiveness based on results, which is why he touted the response when the boss called...but he really should have sensed something when Kim said "wow...he approved an ad?" I would have waited till he got back and then asked him "What happened with the last ad?" before I did anything.
The last ad was a lot of text appearing on screen, it didn't imply a defendant was torturing seniors. I agree expecting forgiveness was his main idea, but I think part of him was self sabotaging. Going back to his fraternal inferiority complex, he doesn't think he can keep up with the 'real lawyers' without flair and showmanship.
And his brother's continued stalking and badgering isn't helping matters. Chuck's complexes are damaging both brothers' mental states.
It's because of the conversation Jimmy had with the guy who produced the prior TV spot, when they were talking about all the meetings and revisions to get the crappy swirling colors just right. Jimmy was expecting to be focus-grouped to death by the partners and wanted to avoid having his (very effective) ad compromised.
Chuck was wrong to passive aggressively sabotage Jimmy obviously, but in this case can't say he was too wrong. Jimmy was breaking the law in a way that would be obvious to Sandpiper and not hard to prove. The events of Breaking Bad kind of vindicate Chuck's opinion of Jimmy having a law degree. Without Saul, Badger probably testifies against Walt and many of the deaths that follow don't occur. Although, you could argue that Jimmy might have been able to thrive as a law-respecting lawyer with his brother's support.
Maybe Jimmy believed it was better to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission? As Gep Malakai pointed out, the last ad the assistant mentioned was in committee hell, and Jimmy probably wanted to avoid that whole mess and take the shortcut to what he believed would be a successful ad.
The tragedy of Jimmy is that he's basically right about everything -- his skills, the Sandpiper case, the quality of his TV ad -- but there's no one in his life he feels he can trust. Kim comes the closest but after she reprimanded him over the "Squat Cobbler" business it looks like that's falling apart too.
Jimmy's just fundamentally anti-authority. His instincts all go back to cons and shortcuts, and that just doesn't work at a big law firm. The first thing he did in his new office was to "rebel" against the light switch note, like he just had to flip the switch once he was told not to. As nasty as he is about it, Chuck is right about some of Jimmy's shortcomings in practicing law. He also may be the source of some of it. It will be interesting to see more about their parents, especially their father. Cliff Main definitely seems to have been set up like a father figure, whom it seems Jimmy can only relate to by defiance. Maybe saddest of all, it seems Jimmy can't relate honestly to Kim, either; consciously or no, he tries to con her, too. Even though she's been his biggest supporter and most genuine friend. Anyway, it's becoming pretty clear how Jimmy and Mike can go over the edge of the precipice of the criminal world.
Chuck is opposed to Jimmy being a lawyer for two reasons. One bad reason, that he thinks Jimmy will never deserve to be his equal. And one good reason, that a con man with a law degree is dangerous. The events of Breaking Bad fully vindicate his second reason. Walter required multiple people to enable him to go on as long as he did. Without that enabling, a lot less damage occurs. Jimmy's ad is well produced but it fits his Saul persona more than Davis & Main. It has the opportunistic ambulance chaser stink, it doesn't look like something from a firm with prestige, and Jimmy knew it.